hey there, im a senior in high school. I live for the arts and mainly sing. jazz, opera, pop you name it. but i am also very very interested in filmmaking and screenwriting. i love the outdoors and outdoor activities like biking and hiking. i love cute charming things and places, and im very liberal and weird. my grades are not too great, i have about a 2.9 average and got around a 1700 on the SAT so academics are not my strong point. that being said, i love to learn and have discussions. Im looking for a college where i can find my right balance between these things.
And i’ve heard back from everywhere…
Bard college- REJECTED
Oberlin college - REJECTED
The New School for music - WAITLISTED
University of North Texas - ACCEPTED INTO SCHOOL REJECTED FROM JAZZ PROGRAM
Centenary College Of Louisiana - ACCEPTED WITH 10,000 year
Cornish College Of The Arts - ACCEPTED 10,000 A YEAR
Ithaca College - ACCEPTED with 15,000 A YEAR
University Of Colorado Boulder - ACCEPTED WITH FULL TUITION AND 8,000 FOR HOUSING (full ride basically)
Before I got my scholarship from Cu, I was almost dead set on Ithaca. I visited it and absolutely loved it, although its very far from my home. It is extremely expensive though, and though I am still applying for other scholarships it seemed like it was a lot of debt to take on. But it seemed like my “perfect fit” school
I really like University Of Colorado too, but I feel like their music program isn’t quite as “happening”. I would love to be around people whos life is all about their art. But who knows.
I know its absolutely crazy to get that kind of scholarship to CU.
I am also strongly still considering UNT. Its only an hour away from my home and I like it a lot. Its already extremely cheap without a scholarship for in state, and I could major in screenwriting.
If you are aiming for a career in the arts, keeping student debt to a minimum is important. You likely won’t be earning much when you first graduate, so paying back big debt will really limit your options.
Congratulations on the big award from CU! Make sure you understand the criteria for renewing that scholarship from year to year. You said that academics weren’t your forte, so you would likely need to work pretty hard to maintain your eligibility.
What type of financial strain would Ithaca put on your family? You should consider learning enough about business to understand that side of the arts, as well as have some back up plan for the lean times.
I know when we took our tour if CU Boulder they told us their music school is extremely selective and top notch…and this is what they told our group of students interested in engineering as we walked by their music school. Is it highly ranked? They sure acted like it was!
@thumper1
all my scholarships are based on my talent. I wouldn’t want to major in anything else…and I’m not that competitive in other areas honestly. I think I could have gone to schools for film but would not have been given the generous aid I’ve gotten. I’ve heard what you major in isn’t really the point anyways
As far as Ithaca…I guess I’d do some loans and my family could help out a bit…maybe like 50/50. Its just too bad when you fall in love with a school and they don’t give you as much as you need. I feel like its not an INSANE price though, like NYU or Berklee
Wow, I would take the Boulder offer and not look back, to have that sort of package means a lot of Freedom to you, free to choose summer programs, jobs you want. Great college town you will find all the kool kids like you. And someone there loves you.
Congratulations of the fine offer(s). I’m surprised that you are getting such scholarships considering your GPA and SAT though… you must be very good at writing essays and have good ECs. At any rate, going for a full ride would be a great idea, and CU would have a broad range of opportunities. But I don’t really know much about any of the colleges, sorry.
@albert69 thanks for your backhanded compliment hahahahah, yes I’m not a bad writer. It annoys most people with impeccable transcripts, but the scholarships are a lot of times in the arts!
Albert. This student is receiving performance awards. They are not based on SAT or ACT or GPA. They are based on talent.
Peachy…you won’t be able to borrow half of $40,000. That would be $20,000. Your parents would need to consign…and they already are taking $20,000. This is for Ithaca. $40,000 a year debt is too much debt…that is $160,000 for four years…assuming costs don’t increase. And the costs WILL increase.
Boulder sounds very promising, and has offered you a very generous award…very generous.
UNT is not expensive. I know a lot about their music school…but nothing about the rest of the University. If you were heading there for music, I would say…go.
Don’t know anything about Centenary School…at all. What would your net cost be there?
What kind of budget do you have for college? I.e. how much will your parents contribute to your college costs? Realistically, you can only self-fund about $10,000 per year from federal direct loans and work earnings (if you get Pell grant, you can add that if your net price is not based on any need-based grants which will include the Pell grant amount).
It is best to look at costs in terms of net price after applying grants and scholarships. It looks like the choices and their yearly costs (which tend to rise each year) are:
CU Boulder: $7,994
North Texas: $22,826 (TX resident, on campus) but rejected from major
Centenary: $35,650
Cornish: $36,450 to $41,890 (depending on room and meal plan choices)
Ithaca: $40,332
If your parents will contribute $0 or close to that, then CU Boulder is your only financially realistic choice.
@ucbalumnus - How are you figuring $35k/year at Centenary??? See Post #10 - unless I’ve misunderstood, the OP just said she’s received a $45k/annual scholarship to Centenary. That’s pretty much a full ride!
I was going by the first post with the $10,000 per year scholarship at Centenary. If the OP got a $45,000 per year scholarship there, then its net price is only $650, making the cheapest option by far.
(Yes, it would avoid confusion if the OP listed net prices rather than scholarship amounts in one post.)